Changing family patterns

Marriage

Key trends → overall decline, increase in re marriage, people marrying later

Statistics → in 2005 40% of all marriages were re-marriages, marriage rates in the uk are at their lowest since 1920

Reasons for trends → secularisation, rising expectations of marriage, women’s independence, women choosing career over marriage

Evaluation → functionalists would argue that marriage as an institution isn’t under threat as high numbers of re marriages show that people are still committed to marriage. People who are getting divorced doesn’t necessarily mean they are against it

Cohabitation

Key trends → wider social acceptance of cohabitation, increase in numbers, long term alternative to marriage, led to a raise in births outside of marriage

Statistics → by 2002 over 25% of unmarried people living in Britain were cohabiting

Reasons for trends → increasingly liberal attitudes to pre-marital sex, secularisation, marriage is expensive

Evaluation → new right are critical of cohabiting couples especially those with children as the argue that cohabiting parents are far more likely to split up than married couples

Separation and divorce

Key trends → divorce rate is increasing, higher rate of divorce in the first five years of marriage, approx 40% of marriages in Britain end in divorce

Statistics → 1969 divorce law reform act came into effect into 1971 making it easier to obtain divorce, almost a 10% increase in divorce from 2020 to 2021

Reasons for trends → changes in social attitudes - couples are placing less emphasis on unconditional commitment of marriage and are quicker to consider divorce

Evaluation → feminists see marriage as a patriarchal institution where only men benefit, feminists encourage women to file for divorce if they are unhappy in marriage

Child bearing

Key trends → women are having children later, women are having fewer children

Statistics → a higher proportion of women are choosing not to have children, more than 40% of children are born outside of marriage

Reasons of trends → women getting married later due to career, approx a quarter of women today wont have children

Evaluation → most people still live in traditional family structures, doesn’t address homosexual relationships, doesn’t address biological factors

Secularisation

The decrease in religion and loss of religions influence over state issues

Marriage

A legally recognised relationship made by a civil or religious ceremony between 2 people in a committed relationship

Monogamy

Means that a person can only have one legal spouse at a time

Increase in RE MARRIAGE

In 2005 40% of all marriages in the Uk were re-marriages

Rising trend of serial monogamy (a series of long-term relationships)

Growing trend of people: marrying → divorcing → re-marrying

Reasons → there is no longer a stigma attached to divorce and re marriage, therefore people are able to divorce and re-marry without fear of being ridiculed, secularisation, changing women positions,

Consequences →. Rising numbers of reconstituted families - when people re marry they join together children and other family members from previous marriages

Marriage is still popular

59% of people agreed with the statement “marriage is still the best kind of relationship”